It Started With a Red Crayon
by StrawberriPudding
Summary: Mikan and Natsume fight over a red crayon in second grade. Years later, they still hate each other...right? Somewhat OOC characters, especially Mikan in second grade
1. 2nd Grade

Hi guys! :)

Hehehe. Review if you want! I know my writing sucks, so critique is good toooo. Gah I wish I could be one of those people who write with ease. No such luck...

Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice or any of its characters. Maybe just Natsume though. Haha not.

* * *

I looked up cutely at my second grade teacher, Miya-sensei. Blinking my wide, innocent eyes and tilting my head slightly, I smiled charmingly.

Miya-sensei, who immediately smiled brightly at me, introduced herself excitedly. "Hello sweetie," she gushed in a sickening sweet voice. "I am your teacher this year, Miya-sensei. It's very nice to meet you. I am going to have such a wonderful time this year with all you adorable kids!"

Of course, I knew the "adorable kids" part was referring to me. I was queen of first grade, and I knew nobody would be able to resist my charms this year either. Inwardly, I was giggling with self satisfaction, but I just followed Miya-sensei obediently inside the classroom.

I plopped down cutely in my desk and patiently waited for other students to show up. As more students came in, I could feel an increasing number of stares in my direction. I felt like gloating. I was just so cute that nobody could keep their eyes off me!

My school day started off just fine, and I soon had a loyal group of kids following me everywhere, calling me "hime-sama" and obeying my orders. But this was pretty normal, as I had been in the center of attention all my life.

Unfortunately, when art class came around, this all changed.

The art teacher, Serina-sensei, had wanted us to draw pictures using crayons, so I drew a pretty little princess. She was wearing a shiny purple crown, a flamboyant princess gown, and glass slippers (just like Cinderella!). She had beautiful light brown hair that cascaded all the way down her back. She was so pretty...just like ME!

The only problem was, I couldn't decide what color her dress should be. Blue, pink, or yellow? Or maybe just white? I stared at the crayon box, looking for color ideas. Suddenly, something caught my eye.

It was a perfect red crayon. A bright, vermillion red. It was so regal, so beautiful, and it lay in the crayon box like royalty among shabby commoners. In any case, it reminded me of my own glory, so I walked over to the crayon box, preparing to grab such a majestic crayon for myself. As I reached out for the crayon, a hand suddenly brushed my hand away and grabbed it.

Shocked, I looked up at the person who would dare steal such a crayon deserving of me. I stared into a pair of piercing crimson eyes, glaring at me in a hostile way. A little bit intimidated, I backed up slightly and focused my eyes down at the floor.

But thankfully, I remembered that I was the _alpha_ here, and no one had the right to touch my property. Suddenly indignant, I looked up confidently and walked over to the crayon stealer. "Hey!" I protested with a pout. "That crayon's mine!"

The crayon stealer turned around to face me. I let out a gasp of horror.

He was so, so cute.

Maybe even cuter than me.

And that made me angry.

The boy walked over to me and leaned over toward me, examining my face. "No." the boy said while scowling. "I found it first, so its mine."

I was distressed. How could I finish my princess's dress if I didn't have that crayon? There weren't any other pretty red crayons. Besides, I deserved that crayon!

I went up to the boy and tried to yank the crayon from his hand. "Give it to me!" I whined. "I saw it first!"

The boy tried to pry my fingers off the crayon. "Let go, you stupid!" he protested, holding the crayon tighter. "Go find another one!"

"NO." I said firmly. "I want _that_ crayon."

"Too bad! I already got it!"

"NO YOU DIDN'T!" In my anger, I tackled the boy, snatching wildly at the crayon.

Suddenly, there was a gruesome snapping noise. I looked down on the floor, and discovered pieces of red scattered all over it. The red crayon had broke.

Horrified, I burst into tears, grieving for the loss of the crayon. I had never been more mortified in my life.

"I-I *hic* I H-HATE *hic* YOUUU!" I cried, pointing a finger accusingly at the red eyed boy.

And I really meant it too. I hated him.

* * *

Hahaha. Little Mikan's such a brat.

Next chapter is going to be about both of them, only grown up! YAAAAY. And Mikan won't be a brat anymore.


	2. The Real Story

Ehhhhh. Chapter two, I guess. Thanks for reviewing peoples!

This is sort of an intro-ish. Real story starts next chapter...sorry.

Disclaimer: yada yada, I don't own Gakuen Alice or any of its characters

* * *

_Note: Mikan and Natsume are both 15 and in 10th grade_

**Mikan's POV**

The truth is, sometimes I feel like I'm still a little kid. I mean, I'm definitely not the brat I used to be (thank GOODNESS), and I've grown more mature, but my relationship with a certain _person_ hasn't changed one bit.

"Move, you fat roadblock."

I turn around to glare at the tall, gorgeous male known as Natsume Hyuuga. He gives me this cocky little smirk, and for the fortieth time that day I feel like stuffing his stupid, beautiful face down the toilet.

This _Natsume Hyuuga_ happens to be the heartthrob of Alice Academy. I suppose he deserves the title, being ridiculously gorgeous and all, but I just don't understand how so many girls could like a guy with such a rotten attitude. But anyways, in case you hadn't noticed, he's my lifelong enemy. We've fought for so long I hardly even remember when we first started this hatred for each other, but I think it must have been that crayon incident in second grade. You'd think that we would've gotten over that incident by now, but noooo, Hyuuga darling just had to go and ruin my life ever since.

But then again, this is not to say I haven't done some pretty horrible things to him either... like ruin his first date. It was so hilarious, though! I laughed like a hyena when I saw the horrified look on the poor girl's face when a cockroach popped out of rose he gave her.

Of course, Hyuuga got his revenge on me in seventh grade with that horrible glue...but we're not going to talk about that.

"So it's polka-dots today too, eh?"

I blush in embarrassment. That perverted Hyuuga always manages to get a glimpse of my underwear every day.

"Pervert!" I yell angrily, throwing a pencil toward Hyuuga's attractive head. He catches the pencil in midair with two fingers. Typical.

"Thanks, little girl." Natsume smirks, twirling my pencil playfully. "I needed a pencil anyway."

Fuming, I grit my teeth in frustration. I really liked that pencil too! I proceed to glare even harder at the back of Hyuuga's head, hoping that I could burn a hole into it or something.

No such luck.

Darn that Hyuuga. He always gets his way with things. Why couldn't he just be a normal human being, like all the rest of us? I'm not just talking about looks either. The truth is that the guy's practically flawless.

See, Natsume's ranked number one in our grade, and he's gotten a 100 on every single test we've taken. I'm pretty sure he has a photographic memory or something, because _I've_ never seen him study. He's also insanely talented at painting, playing _any_ sport, cooking, and whatever else you can think of. And to top off the whole deal, he's super rich too. I may have even thought that he was perfect boyfriend/fiancee/husband material if only he wasn't so infuriating.

All of my girl friends, including Anna, Nonoko, and Sumire are all in love with Natsume. Oh wait, actually, practically the entire girl population is. The only exception is my best friend Hotaru, but I swear that girl is emotionless. The day Hotaru falls in love will be the day pigs fly. She's known as "the ice queen" in Alice Academy, and she lives up to her reputation well. I mean, this is the girl that has the whole campus under surveillance cameras so she can blackmail people to do whatever she wants. Nobody messes with Hotaru. She even terrifies me sometimes.

As for me, I'm not really anything special. I'm pretty, and I'm not just being arrogant when I saw that, but I'm not the most beautiful girl in the world. I'm ranked around 20 something in our grade. I stink at cooking and drawing, but I suppose I'm pretty good at athletics. My family is also pretty wealthy, but anybody in Alice Academy has to be well off to even get in anyway. I'm one of those people who are always above average, but aren't quite _exceptional_ in anything.

It makes me so angry how absolutely unfair life is. The lousy guys always get everything.

* * *

Yaaaaay. Next Chapter is going to some sort of class trip...I think.

Reviewreview? :D:D Even if the story sucks? Please?


	3. And the Camping Trip Begins!

Hey guys! Thanks for reviewing! (:(:

Here's Chapter 3!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice or its characters.

* * *

Mr. Narumi pranced into the classroom cheerfully, wearing a pink tutu and giggling like a maniac.

The class could only watch in silence, glancing awkwardly at the ground every once in a while. Even though _they_ weren't prancing around in a tutus, they felt embarrassed all the same.

"Hello, my darlings," Narumi said in overly cheerful voice. "I have something very _special_ planned for tomorrow. You guys will just love it."

_'Oh dear goodness no,'_ thought the class as their stomachs sank, _'the last time Narumi planned something...' _

Narumi just blinked innocently while clasping his hands together in anticipation, pretending he didn't see look of dread on his students' faces.

Holding up a pink microphone, Narumi announced happily, "Let's all have a fun camping trip ne~~!"

... "EH? WHHATTT?"

* * *

"Ne, Hotaruuuu," Mikan whined into the phone while stuffing a couple of shirts into her suitcase, "I don't wanna go on a camping tripp. There are_ bugs_, and I'll get dirty."

An uninterested voice responded. "Go whine about your stupid problems to somebody else."

"Mouuu... but seriously, camping doesn't even have anything to do with school!"

"*sighs* Mikan, you should know well enough that any activity Narumi plans is an excuse for him to play matchmaker."

Mikan thought for a second and then realized that Hotaru was right. She remembered that the last few class trips they went on involved guy-girl partnerships that Narumi "assigned".

"Ugh, I really hope its not like the past few trips we've had," Mikan complained, "I never got any attractive guys as partners."

_'Could the girl be any shallower?' _thought Hotaru with exasperation.

"Mikan, I don't have time to have this stupid conversation with you. I have to leave for school. The bus leaves in thirty minutes."

"..."

"OH CRAP! I HAVEN'T EVEN FINISHED PAC-"

-clink-

"..."

"beep...beep...beep..."

"Ehhh...Hotaru? Hotaru?"

"beep...beep...this number is not avail-"

"HOTARU? CRAAAPPPP!"

* * *

"So you did make it," stated a mildly amused Hotaru as she watched her best friend running frantically toward the bus while lugging a gigantic suitcase behind her.

Huffing and puffing, Mikan pointed a finger accusingly at Hotaru. "You could have warned me earlier, you know!" Hotaru just raised an eyebrow.

Glancing at Mikan's suitcase, she asked, "Idiot, how much stuff did you bring?"

"Oh well, you know, just the essentials." Mikan counted items off on her fingers. "One blanket, a sleeping mattress, that teddy bear, that stuffed rabbit, Hello Kitty, Mr. Kittycat, ..."

"...Forget I asked."

* * *

At the campsite, students unloaded the bus and set up a campfire. With some difficulty, they eventually managed to set up the school tents as well. After everyone had gotten situated, they all looked toward Mr. Narumi, waiting for further instruction.

"Isn't this simply _fab_ulous?" squealed a gay voice that belonged to Mr. Narumi. "I knew you guys would love it!"

The whole class just stared at Narumi like he was an idiot. How in the world did he convince the school to let them go on a freaking camping trip?

Narumi giggled and threw roses in the air. Then, he rummaged through his coat pocket until he found a slip of paper with lots of hearts and names scribbled on it. He looked at it thoughtfully before announcing several names through a megaphone.

"Tobita Yuu and Anna Umenomiya..."

"Kokoroyomi and Sumire Shouda..."

_'Huh?'_ the students thought in confusion. They looked around, wondering if anyone knew what in the world Narumi was doing.

"Ruka Nogi and Hotaru Imai... "

"Nonoko Osawagara and-"

"Wait!" interrupted one girl. "Sensei, what are you reading those names for?"

"Why, isn't it obvious?" Narumi responded, looking slightly puzzled. "These are your sleeping arrangements."

...

...

...

...

...

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTT? "

* * *

**After the arrangements were all announced...**

"Mikan, idiot, get up," Hotaru said, shaking an unconscious pig-tailed girl back and forth. Mikan, whose mouth was still dangling open in shock, just glanced at Hotaru with glazed over eyes.

"H-Hotaru," Mikan said weakly, tears forming in her eyes. She flung her hand against her forehead dramatically. "I can't live anymore."

Hotaru just rolled her eyes. "Don't be stupid," she said calmly, "Spending one day with Hyuuga is not going to kill you."

"Oh Hotaru," Mikan cried, clinging to the corner of Hotaru's shirt desperately. "But it will, it will!"

She continued wailing, pounding her fists on the ground childishly. "I-I can't spend the night with him in a _tent_! He's a good for nothing pervert and I'll never get married!" A fresh new fountain of tears burst from Mikan's eyes, forming salty puddles on the ground.

"Stop being immature about this," Hotaru responded emotionlessly, prying Mikan's hands off of her. She got up and carefully dusted herself off. "It's not like any of us have a choice either."

_'But none of you guys have to be with h-him!'_ prostested Mikan as an image of a cackling chibi Natsume with a devil's tail and horns popped up in her mind. She pouted, still teary eyed, feeling sorry for herself. How could Narumi do this to her? He _knew_ how much Natsume and her hated each other!

It wasn't just spending the day together either. The "partners" had to stay together during day _and_ night. Which meant...sleeping together too. In a tent.

Just the thought of it made Mikan shudder.

There was no way she would survive this camping trip. And she didn't even bring enough paper to write her will.

* * *

YAAAAAY! Part One of camping trip! ...I dunno how many parts there will be.

Ugh, I know the format is all weird. It looks like a bunch of one shots. And yes, there's no way this would happen in a real high school. But it's Gakuen Alice... (:

Thank you for reading! (:(: Reviewreview please?


	4. Camping Trip Part 2

Hey guys, I really appreciate all you guys reviewing! Thanks! (:

YAY camping trip twooooo.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice or its characters. But you know, Christmas is coming up...haha jk.

* * *

Sitting around a huge campfire, the students wrapped their coats tightly around themselves. It was evening, and starting to get slightly chilly. They were camping in the mountains after all.

"Okay darlings!" Narumi said super chipperly in a fluffy pink overcoat, "Go line up in a row with your partner so I can assign you guys a tent." He winked in a very suggestive manner.

Grudgingly, the students who didn't like their partners got up to stand beside each other awkwardly. Meanwhile, people who actually did like each their partners blushed and smiled dreamily at each other.

Mikan pouted and stood so that her back was completely turned on Natsume, crossing her arms over her chest. She was still getting over the fact that she was partnered up with Natsume _freaking _Hyuuga of all people.

There were murmurs of people greeting each other, or in some cases, people introducing themselves to some person they had never even seen before. It was just like Narumi to set up such awkward situations.

Natsume, noticing Mikan's efforts to stay as far away from him as possible, spoke in a low voice so that nobody else would hear him.

"...I'm not going to do anything to you."

Mikan, still turned the other way, snuck a glance in Natsume's direction. Staring straight into the distance with his deep crimson eyes, Natsume actually looked sort of serious. She wondered if she was just overreacting or being immature about the entire situation.

"You have zero feminine appeal anyway."

...Then again, she hated him. A lot.

Fuming, Mikan stomped the rest of the way to where Narumi was standing. Once they got their tent number, Mikan stormed over to their tent before Natsume, dumping her things inside first.

When Natsume arrived, he found a curtain hanging from along the edges of the top of the tent. Looking mildly amused, he looked at Mikan for explanation.

"This is my side," announced Mikan snappily, pointing to the part of the tent to the left of the curtain. "And that's yours," she said, pointing to the other side. "You may not enter my side of the tent at any time, or touch any of my belongings."

"And likewise," Natsume replied as he set his stuff down with a thud, "I don't want your dirty hands on my stuff either."

"_Fine_." replied Mikan, sitting down in a huff.

* * *

That night, there was a blizzard.

The tents shook with all the wind, and Mikan couldn't sleep with all the pitter patter of ice and snow hitting the tent. Shivering, she tried to hug her blanket closer.

_'Aghhhh, I'm such an idiot,'_ thought Mikan as she realized that despite all the stuff she brought along on the camping trip, she had forgotten to bring a thick blanket!

Teeth chattering, Mikan tried to switch positions in her bed, trying to find the warmest spot. She curled into a ball, holding her knees to her chest and feeling miserable.

Suddenly, a hand emerged from the other side of the curtain, holding a blanket.

"Here," Natsume said from behind the curtain, handing her the blanket. "You're cold right?"

"T-t-thanks," said Mikan, still shivering. She took the blanket from his hands, feeling better immediately.

_'Why is he being so nice to me?'_ thought Mikan, putting his blanket on top of hers. She hadn't done anything but fight with Natsume for the past who knows how many years. And they hadn't been on good terms just a few hours before! But regardless, she was really grateful.

_'So the pervert has his good points too,' _was Mikan's last thought before drifting off to sleep.

* * *

The next morning, the sun shone brightly on the ground and tents that were covered with snow. The sky, bright blue and clear, had not a cloud in sight. Mikan, feeling awake and refreshed, sat up in her bed.

"Hey Natsume," she called through the curtain, "Thank you for lending me your blanket last night."

When there was no answer from him, Mikan pushed aside the curtain, holding his blanket in her hand.

"Natsume?" she asked, sticking her head out the curtain. She found him lying limply on his side, breathing harder than usual, and...blanketless.

_'Oh my God,'_ realized Mikan in horror, _'Don't tell me he gave me his **only** blanket!'_

Feeling immensely guilty, Mikan frantically gathered up all of the blankets in the tent and layered them on top of Natsume. She crawled over to where he was lying, and found her fears confirmed when she felt his forehead.

Natsume Hyuuga did indeed have a fever.

* * *

"Mikan," sighed Narumi when she informed him of what happened, "It's part of your responsibility to watch over your partner so that this _doesn't_ happen."

"I know," replied Mikan meekly, hanging her head in guilt.

_'How could you be so stupid, Mikan?'_ she scolded herself, slapping herself inwardly._'You didn't even think to check if he had enough blankets because you were too busy feeling bad for yourself! Stupidstupidstupid!'_

"Well," continued Narumi, "I have no choice but to make you stay behind while the rest of us go hiking." He handed her a few towels and some other supplies.

"Take good care of Hyuuga-kun, kay?"

Mikan could have sworn that she saw Narumi's eyes shining with excitement with the last sentence.

* * *

Mikan sat in the tent, holding a wet towel in one hand and sighing. As much as she fought with Natsume, it was her fault that he got sick, and she wanted to make up for it. Besides, she didn't want to owe Natsume anything.

Sitting by his bedside, Mikan brushed back Natsume's hair and placed the wet towel on his forehead.

"I'm sorry Natsume," she apologized silently, looking down on his slightly flushed face. "But you really didn't have to give me your blanket..."

Come to think of it, although she and Natsume were always at each other's throats, she had never been in such close proximity with him. And glancing down at Natsume now, Mikan couldn't help but admire his gorgeous features. Messy raven hair, dark long eyelashes, flawless skin, a strong jaw, and a pair of luscious red lip-

'No!' cried Mikan inside her head, shaking her head rapidly, _'Get your head out of the gutter! What are you, a pervert?'_

_'And remember, you hate him..._

_...right?'_

_

* * *

_

Yay, part two completed! (: (: And today is my birthday, so you could review as a birthday present...?

Haha, joking, review if you want to!

Oh, and I also feel like I'm centering on Natsume and Mikan too much. Do you guys think so too? I love HotaruxRuka and KokoxSumire too...so I could try to include them too. Tell me, kay?


	5. Camping Trip Part 3

YAAAAAY It's finally Christmas Break for us! (:

Thank you so much for reviewing, once again. It really means a lot!

Here's the final part of the camping trip!

Disclaimer: Yeah, so obviously I don't own Gakuen Alice or any of its characters. I'm not talented enough.

**

* * *

**

**Meanwhile...**

"Hey that reminds me, " commented Sumire while the class was hiking in the mountains with their partners, "Where are Mikan and Natsume?" She hadn't noticed they were gone at first because there were so many students, but now it was obvious that they weren't anywhere in sight.

"Oh, now that you mention it, " said Anna thoughtfully, "I haven't seen them at all..."

"..."

"So, where are they?"

"Hyuuga's sick and Mikan's taking care of him."

Everybody turned to look at Hotaru, who was sipping hot cocao and sitting on a walking chair.

"What?" Hotaru asked, acting like it was the most natural thing ever. She pushed a button on the chair and an umbrella popped up above her, blocking leaves and dirt from falling on her.

"And how do you know?" Sumire narrowed her eyes at her suspiciously.

"I have the whole camp under surveillance, duh."

The class just sweatdropped, thinking _'How did that girl manage to get the whole camp under camera already? So scary ...'_.

* * *

_'Gosh, I suck at this,' _thought Mikan as she threw in some onions into a pot. She was trying to make some porridge for Natsume, who still had a pretty high fever. At least he was awake now, which meant his condition was a somewhat better than before.

She absentmindedly threw in a little salt and some other ingredients. Then she used a spoon to scoop some of it up to try. _'Ehhh, it's decent enough,'_ Mikan decided happily.

Holding a bowl of it, Mikan entered the tent brightly. "Lunch is ready!" she told the lump in the corner of the tent.

Rubbing his temple, a disoriented Natsume attempted to sit up, looking a little bit unsteady. Mikan brought him a pillow to lean against.

"What poison are you feeding me now?"

"Meanie!" pouted Mikan. "It's not poison! I tried it and it tastes good." She sat down next to him and forced a spoonful into his mouth, watching his expression.

"So?"

"...Digusting." Natsume said with a grimace, although he secretly thought it was pretty good. Mikan just ignored him and stuffed some more into his mouth.

"Shut up and eat, Jerk."

After several minutes of struggling, Natsume finally finished all of the porridge Mikan made. He felt a little better than before, but he would never admit that to her. Setting the bowl aside, Mikan sat cross-legged beside Natsume's bed, staring off into the distance.

"...Hey Natsume," Mikan said quietly after a while of silence, "You know... About last night, I'm really sorr-

"Don't mention it."

Natsume had his face turned away from Mikan, leaning against the side of the tent so that she wouldn't see his expression. Mikan looked down at her lap, wondering why Natsume was being so nice to her. It didn't seem like he was nearly as bad now as she thought he was.

"...Strawberries."

"KYAAAAAA!" Upon realizing the meaning of Natsume's words, the earlier silence was immediately broken by Mikan's shriek of horror. How in the world did he catch a glimpse of her panties, even when she was wearing pants? She threw a pillow at Natsume's face, not caring whether or not he was sick.

"I-I can't believe the nerve of you!" She yelled furiously, "And to think I actually thought you were decent for once! But you're _still_ a pervert, even when you're sick!" She pelted him with a stuffed bear.

Natsume, amused, just gave her his signature smirk and climbed back into bed.

* * *

"I wonder what the two of them are doing now..." said Nonoko as the group of students began their descent down the mountain. It was a little bit past noon.

"AGGH!" shrieked Sumire loudly as she thought about the cuddling up the two were probably doing. "I'm so jealous of Mikan! If only _I_ got Natsume as my partner!" She huffed discontently.

"But nooo," complained Sumire even more, brushing a twig off her shirt, "I'm stuck with this _freak _who always seems to know what I'm thinking! It's so annoying!" She glared at her partner Koko, who just shrugged and smiled blankly, which only seemed to make Sumire more angry. "And wipe that annoying smile off your face!"

Meanwhile, the Ruka Hotaru pair was faring only slightly better than the Sumire and Koko one. Over the course of two hours, they had already established an interesting kind of relationship. Even Ruka Nogi, who was one of the most popular and handsome male students in the grade, could not resist against Hotaru's blackmailing. Forced to obey her orders, a depressed Ruka trailed after the Ice Queen Hotaru Imai, carrying her stuff and offering her platters of crab every few minutes.

_'Poor Ruka-kun,'_ Anna thought as he watched him trudging along sadly behind Hotaru. It was a good thing that she liked her partner.

Yuu and Anna had hit it off right away, and were already becoming good friends. He was really nice and considerate to her, and they had many similarities. For example, they both liked cooking and were going to exchange recipes when they got back to school.

The Nonoko Mochu duo was also getting along fine, and it appeared as if they were starting to like each other already. Walking behind the rest of the group, they talked with each other animatedly, ignoring the noise (mainly Sumire's shrieking) that other students were making.

* * *

By the time that Mikan had calmed down, Natsume had already fallen asleep again.

Mikan, looking down at Natsume's innocent and ridiculously handsome sleeping face, just couldn't stay mad at him. Sighing, she placed a fresh new towel on his forehead. It looked like his fever had gone down a little.

Watching the rise and fall of Natsume's chest, Mikan felt strangely peaceful and comfortable. She had the sudden urge to lay her head down, and so she did.

Before she knew it, she had already drifted off into a deep sleep by Natsume's side.

* * *

"...Get off of me."

Mikan woke up with a start immediately. "AHHHH!" she screamed, letting go of Natsume right away. "Sorry." Somehow while sleeping, she had ended up in a position where she was hugging him tightly around the waist.

Flushing, she backed away and looked downwards at the ground. "...Are you feeling better now?"

"...Yeah." Natsume replied, being completely truthful. He just had the most peaceful sleep in a long time, and was feeling much better.

"Good, good!" Mikan replied awkwardly, still embarassed about what happened a few seconds before. "I'm uhh going to get some... fresh air?" She said, exiting the tent rather frantically.

"..."

_'Dangit,'_ thought Mikan as she stood outside, the cold winter air blowing through her hair.

_'Why is my heart beating so fast?'_

_

* * *

_

Yay. Camping trip is overrrr! Back to school!

Yeah, the trip really wasn't much, considering my chapters are short-ish...

But anyways, hope you guys enjoyed it! Review, Critique... anything?

Happy Holidays! (:


	6. Christmas Preparations

Hiii!

Sorry for the late update, I've been kind of busy lately. I'm really happy that you guys are reviewing though. Thanks soo much!

**Disclaimer**: So once upon a time there was this really awesome mangaka named Higuchi Tachibana who owned Gakuen Alice, and there was this other girl (me) who was really jealous. The end.

* * *

It was a typical day, or as typical as it gets, at the prestigious school of Gakuen Alice.

Self proclaimed "princess" Sumire was posed elegantly in a chair with two of her servants fanning her with peacock feathers, Ice Queen Hotaru Imai was holding a large baka cannon in her left hand and assembling some invention in her right, Prince Charming Ruka Nogi was petting his rabbit absentmindedly, Koko was reading somebody's mind and smiling creepily, fangirls were fawning over Natsume and Ruka, and Mikan Sakura...was...uh...silent...?

Okay, so maybe _not_ so typical.

"Ne, ne," whispered Anna in a hushed voice to Nonoko, "What's wrong with _her_?" They both glanced worriedly at the pig-tailed girl, who was sitting silently with a blank expression on her face. It was rare to see the girl so unenergetic. By this time she usually would have started a full out argument with Natsume.

"Miiiikannn-channn," Nonoko called, kneeling over to wave a hand back and forth over her face, "Are you alright?"

"Uh...yeah." She snapped out of her thoughts and gave Nonoko a reassuring smile. "I'm perfectly fine! Don't worry about me." Nonoko gave her a doubtful look.

_'You idiot,'_Mikan scolded herself inside her head, _'Why are you still thinking about Natsume and that camping trip? Just because he was nice to you once doesn't mean anything has changed. He's still the same old good for nothing pervert Hyuuga!' _She banged her head again and again on the desk, feeling like an idiot.

Anna and Nonoko sweatdropped. _'Is she really okay I wonder?'_

Suddenly, the classroom door slid open and Narumi-sensei came parading in, looking cheerful as usual in pink elf costume. The students looked up and down at the disgustingly garish outfit. It covered him from head to toe, complete with laced sleeves and little pointy elf boots with pink bows. And two weeks before Christmas too...

"Darlinnnggss!" He greeted, his pink elf hat with bells jingling, "I've missed you cute children so much!"

The students all sweatdropped. The camping trip was only yesterday.

"..."

Ignoring their unenthusiastic reply, he went on. "So I was thinking about Christmas yesterday,"

_'Well obviously...' _They thought, shooting another disgusted glance toward Narumi's outfit.

" and I just knew we had to do something to make this year's holiday e_xtra_ special!"

The students gave each other strange looks, and then slowly narrowed their eyes at Narumi-sensei.

"Now, now," Narumi smiled, glancing at his glaring students, "No need to be so hostile, okay? Let's cheer up. It's the holiday season after all!"

"..."

A brown haired guy from the back row broke the silence, speaking on the behalf of the class. "Cut the crap. Just tell us what other idiotic thing you've planned now." The class nodded in agreement.

Well, well. His students were certainly catching on fast. Narumi couldn't help but smile a little. "Well, since you asked so nicely..." He gave the guy a wink. The guy visibly blanched.

"With Christmas fast approaching, there's only one thing we've got to do, yes yes." Narumi nodded his head, thoughts of matchmaking his students racing through his head.

"So what is it?" chorused the students.

"Well, if its Christmas..."

"What?"

"...tradition, you know..."

"What?"

"definitely got to be..."

"**WHAT**?" the students demanded, annoyed that he wasn't getting to the point.

"Well, Secret Santa, of course."

"...oh."

* * *

"You know, for Mr. Narumi, Secret Santa isn't that much of a far fetched idea for Christmas..." remarked Anna as she remembered last year's Christmas, which involved reindeer racing with real reindeers imported from Africa and full body santa suits...

"True," agreed Mikan, "But this is Narumi after all...I'm sure he'll come up with a strange twist or something."

The girls sighed together. "Yeah, that _would_ be something he would do..."

"But I guess we should go pick up to pick our partners now or else all the good ones will be taken." Anna pointed at the crowd of girls around Narumi, shouting "I want Natsume-sama!" or "I want Ruka-sama!"

Mikan watched the scene with slight irritation and amusement. All those screaming girls were certainly crazy for Natsume and Ruka. _'Not without good reason though...' _Mikan admitted grudgingly, glancing over at the two extremely good looking male specimens.

All the fangirls' faces filled with hope as they picked up slips of paper from the hat, and then fell in disappointment as they opened the slips of paper to find the name of some other guy or girl written on it. A disappointed group of girls headed back for their seats, grumbling. It looked like nobody had gotten Ruka or Natsume yet.

Sumire pushed through the crowd, shoving everyone behind her. "Ohoohohohoho! I'm the one who'll get Natsume-kun!" she cackled, waving a hand in front of her mouth. Shooting a smug look toward the other fangirls, she grabbed a slip of paper from Narumi's hat. _'This will be it for sure!' _she thought in anticipation. Ignoring the glares in her direction, Sumire opened the paper with confident and gleaming eyes. She scanned the paper anxiously, and then dropped her jaw in shock. "N-no way..."

The words "Natsume Hyuuga" were nowhere to be seen.

"GAHHH!" She shrieked frustratedly, crushing the piece of paper in her hand. Instead she had gotten... "HOW DID I GET THAT STUPID MIND READER AGAINN?" The whole class laughed.

"...Looks like your Secret Santa isn't so secret anymore," said Mochu, putting an hand on Koko's shoulder. Koko just shrugged, although he felt sort of disheartened that Sumire hated him. He didn't mind her that much, really, even if she was a total drama queen.

Mikan wondered if anyone had gotten her yet. She didn't really care who it was as long as they gave her decent presents at least. She wasn't too picky with these kinds of things. Anything with food would be okay, really...She drooled at the thought of candy canes, and fluff puffs, and cakes, and cookies, and...

"Stupid." Hotaru whacked Mikan on the back of her head. "Stop standing around and looking stupid. Go pick from the hat already. You're one of the last students. "

Mikan wiped away the drool from her mouth. "Wahhhh. Have you already picked too, Hotaru?"

"Duh." Hotaru rolled her eyes. Her robot had gotten one for her a while ago.

That perked up Mikan's curiousity. "Who? Tell me!"

"No."

"Come onnnn! I wanna know!"

"_No_." She pushed Mikan toward Narumi. "Now go pick."

Mikan stumbled toward Narumi. She sighed exasperatedly and then reached into the hat and took a slip of paper. Secret Santa huh? It made her feel like she was still in elementary school, and elementary was not a good time for her. She thought back to her bratty little second grade self, the one who thought she was the prettiest one in the class and fought with little cocky Natsume. _'We really haven't changed much...' S_he thought, giggling a little.

Wait.

_'What the heck. Why am I thinking of him again?' _

She shook her head and stared at the piece of paper in her hand. Her heart was thumping a little as she prepared to open the piece of paper, although she had no idea why. There was really no reason to be nervous...It was just a silly Secret Santa event after all. It wasn't like she _wanted _to give presents to any particular person.

Even so, she felt her palms sweating slightly and her stomach fluttering in anticipation as she carefully unwrapped the scrap of paper to find...

...

Sakama Chiaki.

Her heart fell slightly, even though she had no idea what she was hoping for anyway. Then she shook her head.

_'Why am I disappointed?_' she asked herself. _'It's not like I was secretly hoping for someone else, right?' _

Maybe she was disappointed because she didn't even know this 'Sakama Chiaki'. She could have easily picked out gifts for Hotaru, Anna, Nonoko, Sumire, Tobita, or anyone in the class really, but now she had to give presents to some total stranger guy. She didn't know what he liked, what kind of person he was, or even what he looked like! And to think she thought that she knew everyone in the class by now...

She paused. Come to think about it, why _didn't_ she know who he was? It was really quite strange, considering she had never heard of him in her life and he was supposedly her classmate!

She walked up to Narumi with a puzzled look on her face. "Sensei, who's Sakama-san?" She whispered, not wanting this Sakama guy (if he was in the classroom) to overhear her and feel offended.

Narumi stared at her slip of paper in confusion. _'Uhh..Sakama Chiaki?' _Tilting his head to one side thoughtfully, he racked his brain for a 'Sakama-kun', thousands of images of his cute students flashing in his mind. Hmmm... _'Who WAS that again?...'_

"Ehehehehe.."

"Sensei," Mikan said, sweatdropping, "Don't tell me you don't know either!" She stared at him in disbelief.

"Uh..No, of course not, silly Mikan-chan!" Narumi lied, smiling nervously. " I..just need a few moments is all!" He tried desperately to remember where he had heard that name before. _'It does sound so familiar...'_

"Oh!" Narumi suddenly realized, his face lighting up. He couldn't believe that he had almost forgotten.

Narumi smiled at her apologetically. "Oh Mikan-chan, I'm sorry for not telling you sooner. Sakama-san is the transfer student that will be coming tommorow!"

Mikan sighed in relief. So she wasn't that horrible of a person to completely forget about one of her classmates. At least that was off her conscience.

"You're his Secret Santa, so help him around the school, okay? I'm counting on you." He gave her a wink and ruffled her head.

"Okay!" Mikan replied happily. She was excited for the transfer student's arrival and wondered what kind of person he might be.

* * *

Uhhh...sorry guys. I haven't updated in so long and this is such a lame and boring chapter. GAH I blame my unimaginative mind...

Next time it'll be better...I hope...?

But I would still really appreciate it if you reviewed! :D Oh, and please please please send me your ideas for future chapters. I'm not very creative so... XD


	7. Transfer Student

OOOH it's been so so long, but i updated, hehe :P

hope you guys have been well!

**Disclaimer**: Of course I don't own Gakuen Alice or its characters

* * *

"Everyone," Narumi announced once the tardy bell rang and the students took their seats, "I am happy to say that we will be adding a new member to our class today."

The class ooohed. New students were almost always interesting.

"He's come a long way from Europe, so be sure to welcome him properly, alright?" Narumi winked.

The class ooohed some more. Foreigners were even better.

Narumi nodded, opening the door. "Come in now, Sakama-kun."

A tall, physically fit figure emerged from the doorway. He had tousled honey blonde hair, an earring on his left ear, and sported boyishly good looks.

"Hey." He said, breaking out into a cheeky grin. "Sakama Chiaki. Pleased to meet you."

_'He's so..so...cutee!' _All the girls thought simultaneously, blushing slightly. He was definitely very charismatic.

"So, why don't you tell the class a little about yourself?" Narumi smiled encouragingly.

"Er..I'm half Japanese, half European. My dad is a politician, and I have 6 sisters. I really like pastries and sweets of any sort, and I play the cello. The reason I came here...well, to be honest, I'm looking for a wife."

_'Huh?'_ the class wondered. _'That doesn't make any sense, why here especially?'_

But before the class could bombard him with any questions, Narumi motioned toward an empty seat next to Mikan. "Sakama-kun, sit there. And if you have any questions, ask Mikan-chan. Mikan-chan, raise your hand."

Mikan raised her hand, and Chiaki walked over. She gave Chiaki a sunny smile and offered her hand. "Hi, I'm Sakura Mikan, nice to meet you. Let's become good friends, okay?"

Chiaki was a little taken aback by Mikan's cheerfulness, but he decided he liked the girl. "Sure," he laughed, taking her hand. "I'll be in your care."

* * *

"Ne ne Sakama-san," Mikan asked Chiaki when it was time for lunch. "Want to sit with us today?"

"Of course." He replied with a smile, and Mikan beamed at him. Meanwhile, a group of Chiaki newly formed fan girls glared at the two.

_'Arrghh! That sly sly Sakura-san..'_ They thought, biting their lips in frustration. _'Why does she get all the opportunities to bond with hot guys?'_ Waterfall tears rolled down their eyes.

"Say, Sakama-san-

"Chiaki is fine."

"Okay Chiaki-kun, you can call me Mikan then."

* * *

Natsume crushed the milk carton in his hand. It was all he could do to prevent himself from punching someone.

He watched as that loser Mamiyama, or whatever the heck his name was, walked into the cafeteria side by side with Mikan and took a seat next to her at the lunch table. Mikan was giggling at something he was saying, and he was smiling at her. Natsume's eyes burned with fury and jealousy.

"Natsume..." said Ruka worriedly, petting his pet rabbit. Judging by the murderous look on Natsume's face, someone might really get injured.

"Hey Mikan," Chiaki asked. "Want some ice cream? My treat." He grinned boyishly.

"Really?" Mikan said, eyes sparkling puppy dog style. She clasped her hands together. "Can I?"

"Of course," Chiaki laughed, ruffling her hair and leading her toward the ice cream line.

Natsume clenched his teeth in frustration. There was no way he was going to give Mikan up to the likes of him. Besides, he had laid claim to Mikan way before that blondie wimp had.

It was an interesting story, really, of how he ended up falling in love with an idiotic girl like Mikan. Natsume himself wasn't too sure how it happened exactly. At first he had just thought of Mikan as an ordinary spoiled brat, but after day after day of arguing with her, the girl sort of grew on him. She _was_ conceited in elementary school, all right, but she could also be generous and thoughtful. She could be mean to anyone who she thought as a threat, but she could be kind as well. When Hotaru first transferred to the school and everyone was scared of her, Mikan was the first to greet her with a cheerful smile and introduce herself. She tried her best to be friends with everyone, and would never ignore any stranger or friend in need. Of course, Mikan wasn't exactly perfect either, but he liked her flaws too. She was a little bit childish, whiny, sometimes shallow, stubborn, way too cheerful, and somewhat clueless, but she was also strong. She did what she believed was right, and wouldn't let anyone tell her otherwise. And before he knew it, he was watching over everything that she did, observing her every action and silently protecting her behind the scenes.

But as smart as Natsume was, he never figured out how to keep close to her. It wasn't like he could randomly become _nice_ or something, like Ruka. It was just the way he was. The only way he knew was to tease her relentlessly, even if it meant that she might hate him.

Natsume ran a hand through his messy raven hair. Boy was he whipped now, he thought as he glanced warily toward where Mikan stood licking her ice cream happily. When did he get so disgustingly cheesy?

It wasn't even because Mikan was super gorgeous or something. She was only above average pretty, and still looked around thirteen years of age with her large, brown eyes and childish hairstyle. Even so, people don't choose who they fall in love with.

And Natsume Hyuuga, heartthrob and prodigy of Alice Academy, was just lucky enough to fall in love with an idiot by the name of Mikan Sakura.

* * *

Hey guys! Yayyy finished this chapter. I hope you liked it!

For some reason, I found the idea of Natsume drinking milk comical. Haha.

But anyways, sugestions sugestions anyone? Seriously, please message me.

Review? (:


End file.
